Starting in February of 2013, typical household battery chargers sold in the State of California will have to meet new efficiency standards.

The California Energy Commission has ordered manufacturers to
reduce by 40 percent the electricity used by chargers that re-power
cell phones, lap top computers and other battery-operated
devices.

Adam Gottleib with the Commission says more than 2,000
gigawatt hours can be saved every year once everyone's chargers
conform to the new efficiency
regulation.

GOTTLEIB: "The amount of money that will be saved by
putting in this simple fix will be more than $300 million a year.
The standard phases in three parts. It's consumer products in
2013, then industrial in 2014 and commercial in 2017."

A number of products sold in California already comply with the
new standard. The Commission says 1.25 million homes could be
powered with the electricity currently being wasted by inefficient
chargers.